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titanium case?

F

FalconSS

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jul 2, 2004
Messages
1,297
Hey all!
Thinking of building a smooth small form factor out of titanium sheet.

anyone have any experience with titanium?

any help or suggestions?
 
I don't know a whole lot about titanium... but I do know you'll probably need a carbide blade to cut it with since the stuff is very tough.
 
You may want to reconsider, as titanium dust is flammable and C02 based fire extinguishers will not put it out...

From Wiki:

As a powder or in the form of metal shavings, titanium metal poses a significant fire hazard and, when heated in air, an explosion hazard. Water and carbon dioxide-based methods to extinguish fires are ineffective on burning titanium; Class D dry powder fire fighting agents must be used instead.[3]
 
mj007 said:
You may want to reconsider, as titanium dust is flammable and C02 based fire extinguishers will not put it out...

From Wiki:

As a powder or in the form of metal shavings, titanium metal poses a significant fire hazard and, when heated in air, an explosion hazard. Water and carbon dioxide-based methods to extinguish fires are ineffective on burning titanium; Class D dry powder fire fighting agents must be used instead.[3]
Click to expand...

It makes the case all the more cooler.
 
Probably best to find professionals to at least cut the pieces you need. It would be an expensive but awesome endeavor.
 
I also say you get the titanium cut professionally.

Titanium should have no problem igniting after it's cut to a SFF case. The powder is what you have to be careful with as auto ignition can happen at 480F and could cause irritation when touched.

But once the case is wiped down and vaccumed I think you should have one sexy looking piece of hardware.
 
mj007 said:
You may want to reconsider, as titanium dust is flammable and C02 based fire extinguishers will not put it out...

From Wiki:

As a powder or in the form of metal shavings, titanium metal poses a significant fire hazard and, when heated in air, an explosion hazard. Water and carbon dioxide-based methods to extinguish fires are ineffective on burning titanium; Class D dry powder fire fighting agents must be used instead.[3]
Click to expand...

It's often used in motorbike exhausts though; haven't heard of any exploding yet.
 
thanks for the input everyone!

I am doing lots of research right now and I came across those same problems. I should be able to get it cut from the supplier.

I am planning to put a dual rad in the back. I am also playing with ideas in sketch up.
I want it to be really smooth with a slot load optical drive in the front and a curved top. will a normal brake work for bending this stuff?

I will have design ideas up soon...

EDIT./.. found this

Fabrication

Conventional installation and fabrication procedures, similar to those used for other architectural metals, apply to architectural titanium. Its workability is comparable to stainless steel.
Standard metal forming tools, processing and techniques are used to shear, form, machine and join titanium. Regular TIG welding procedures can be employed and titanium's self-restoring oxide film prevents welds from deteriorating. In addition, titanium's appearance can be customized through a variety of secondary metal processing techniques, including etching, embossing, spinning, abrasive blasting, plating and perforating.



http://www.azom.com/details.asp?ArticleID=1299





and this is what gave me the idea...this is a bad photo but you will get the picture

http://www.greatbuildings.com/cgi-bin/gbi.cgi/Guggenheim_Bilbao.html/cid_bilbao_002.html
 
Titanium doesn't shape like regular metals, either. It is a "memory" metal. It tries to return to its original shape. Thus, shaping Titanium requires multiple stamps or passes for it to re-learn a new shape. Another reason why it is so expensive.
 
Awesome idea... I've never seen a case built from Ti. Are you sure this is in a decent price range?
 
i think this would look stellar.... please do post pics if u go through with it. very original idea!
 
I know from experience, titanium is a bitch to cut with any type of tools you might have at home. I once shortened a Titanium 4-40 screw. Took forever to cut just one with a Dremel and a reinforced cutoff wheel.

However with titanium you would have the lightness of an aluminum case with the strength and durability of steel, however it is going to be expensive as heck!
 
Class D Dry Powder = Sand.

When I was in a chemical lab, we normally had buckets of sand just laying around when there was a chance of metallic fires. Preferably some calcium carbonate mixed with the sand.

Edit: Oh... and never add water to a metallic fire. It just quenches the metals and adds oxygen.
 
More quotes from Wiki relevant to the conversation at hand:

Titanium burns in air when heated to 2,200 °F and in pure oxygen when heated to 610 °C (1,130 °F) or higher, forming titanium dioxide. It is also one of the few elements that burns in pure nitrogen gas (it burns at 800 °C or 1,472 °F and forms titanium nitride, which causes embrittlement).
>>

Commercial (99.2% pure) grades of titanium have ultimate tensile strength of about 63,000 psi, equal to that of some steel alloys, but are 45% lighter.

Titanium is 60% heavier than aluminium, but more than twice as strong as the most commonly used 6061-T6 aluminium alloy.
>>

It is fairly hard (although not as hard as some grades of heat-treated steel), non-magnetic and a poor conductor of heat. Machining requires precautions, as the material will soften and gall if sharp tools and proper cooling methods are not used.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanium
Click to expand...

As a metalsmith & retired master machinist I must say that Titanium is not that much harder to work than conventional metals like Steel or Aluminum.
Having said that, the metal's unique properties does mandate special preparations, as stated above.

Also, if one intends to heat the metal for bending or welding purposes, we must remain mindful that Titanium becomes brittle if heated above 800F in the presence of Oxygen.
 
mj007 said:
You may want to reconsider, as titanium dust is flammable and C02 based fire extinguishers will not put it out...

From Wiki:

As a powder or in the form of metal shavings, titanium metal poses a significant fire hazard and, when heated in air, an explosion hazard. Water and carbon dioxide-based methods to extinguish fires are ineffective on burning titanium; Class D dry powder fire fighting agents must be used instead.[3]
Click to expand...

Just about everything in dust form is explosive.

A simple solution to this would be to take your dimensions to a waterjet cutting place. You can also have it laser cut, but laser you have to get a good shop to do it as titanuim is pretty flamable.

It's not much diffrent than other metals when it comes to cutting. I'd personally have it professional cut just becuase of the price of this metal, last thing I want is to purchase a ton of extra stock because of screwups.
 
thanks for all the suggestions and tips! i'm getting closer to having a design I am happy with. This project will probably take a couple of months because I don't have a lot of time on my hands.

60 hrs/week = work (soon to be 70)
15hrs/week = college
the rest = fiance
2hrs/week sleep (just kidding)

I also have yet to hear back from a quote from a supplier. Do any of you know of a good online supplier? I live in a small town and no one deals in Ti around here.
 
Ockie said:
Just about everything in dust form is explosive.

A simple solution to this would be to take your dimensions to a waterjet cutting place. You can also have it laser cut, but laser you have to get a good shop to do it as titanuim is pretty flamable.

It's not much diffrent than other metals when it comes to cutting. I'd personally have it professional cut just becuase of the price of this metal, last thing I want is to purchase a ton of extra stock because of screwups.
Click to expand...

I would highly recommend a water knife, as laser burns the metal and leaves a nasty cut to deburr, especially with Titanium. Also with the price of Titanium, purchasing extra with cost a pretty penny.

OP, from experience I can tell you Titanium is not fun to work with nor to drill holes into. However I wish you the best of luck making your case! It is indeed a grand endeavor.
 
FalconSS said:
<text>
I also have yet to hear back from a quote from a supplier. Do any of you know of a good online supplier? I live in a small town and no one deals in Ti around here.
Click to expand...
You might try Online Metals.

http://www.onlinemetals.com/merchant.cfm?id=322&step=2&top_cat=131

And here are a couple technical reference pages which may be useful.

- Heat Treating of Titanium and Titanium Alloys
http://www.key-to-metals.com/Article97.htm

- Properties of Titanium grades
http://www.alleghenyludlum.com/ludlum/pages/products/xq/asp/G.12/qx/ProductLine.html
 
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